Taoyuan police seize NT$180 million worth of ketamine in drug bust

Taipei-- Police busted a drug ring in Taoyuan earlier this week, arresting seven suspects and seizing NT$180 million (US$5.71 million) worth of ketamine, the city's District Prosecutors Office said Friday.

In an operation that was carried out Tuesday to Thursday under the instructions of district prosecutors, several locations were raided, including a sheet metal building where the drug was being manufactured, the office said.

The suspected ring leader, surnamed Liu, and six others believed to have been involved in the manufacture of the illegal drug were arrested and are being held incommunicado with the permission of the court, the prosecutors' office said.

The seven suspects are believed to be members of a branch of the Tiandaomeng gang, one of the most powerful criminal organizations in Taiwan, according to prosecutors.

During the raid, police also seized a quantity of ketamine, with an estimated street value of NT$180 million, and equipment that was being used to produce the drug, prosecutors said.

Taoyuan prosecutors said they ordered the raid after obtaining information that a Taoyuan-based gang was manufacturing drugs there.